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woensdag 6 juni 2012

Darren Criss, who plays Blaine Anderson on the Fox hit "Glee," will perform for President Obama at the LGBT Leadership Council fundraising gala in Beverly Hills on Wednesday.

The event, which will also feature a performance by "So What" singer Pink, takes place Wednesday at Beverly Hills' SLS Hotel.

Criss revealed his participation via his Twitter account Tuesday, writing, "So bummed I'll have to miss my dental appointment to sing for The US President Wed night. thanx @Pink for messin that up!!"

For the irony-impaired, Criss added, "But in all seriousness @Pink- what an honor!"

In addition to his acting duties, Criss has launched a musical career, releasing an independent EP, "Human," in 2010. Criss is signed with Sony Music Entertainment, with an eye toward releasing a full-length studio album.

Obama became the first U.S. president to come out in favor of marriage equality in May, telling ABC News' Robin Roberts, "I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married."

The "Sliders" actor has been cast as Herman Munster in NBC's upcoming reboot of the classic comedy "The Munsters," the network confirms to The Wrap.

The revamp, titled "Mockingbird Lane," also includes Eddie Izzard as Grandpa Munster. The pilot is scheduled to begin shooting this month, and could air midseason 2012-13.

"Mockingbird Lane" will represent a dramatic departure from the original series. For starters, it's being reincarnated as a one-hour drama. The brainchild of former "Pushing Daisies" scribe Bryan Fuller, the project has been described as a darker, edgier take on its predecessor, which starred Fred Gwynne as Herman and Al Lewis as Grandpa.

The revamp has had a roundabout path to fruition. After initially greenlighting the project in Sept. 2010, NBC brass initially passed on Fuller's original script, but incoming NBC Entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt was intrigued enough by the project to give it another go.

Izzard will also serve as a producer on the series.

O'Connell most recently starred in the CBS legal dramedy "The Defenders."

So much for the notion that TV critics hold up their noses at broadcast networks.

In its second annual Critics Choice Awards nominations, the Broadcast Television Journalists Association gave the most nominations to "Community" and its network, NBC. "Community" had six nominations, and AMC's "Mad Men" followed with five.

NBC had 14 nominations, ABC 13, and Fox 12.

That stood in sharp contrast to the Emmys, where HBO tends to dominate. In the Critics Choice Award, it tied Fox with 12 nominations.

Cable still dominated in the Best Drama Series category: CBS' "The Good Wife" and PBS' "Downton Abbey" joined AMC's "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad," Showtime's "Homeland," and HBO's "Game of Thrones."

But after a big season for network comedies, they dominared in Best Comedy. HBO's "Girls" was the only cable entry in a field that also included "Community," CBS' "The Big Bang Theory," ABC's "Modern Family," Fox's "The New Girl," and NBC's "Parks and Recreation."

The critical love for "Community" comes after a rough year for the series. It was pulled from NBC's midseason schedule because of midseason ratings, then returned late in the season as show creator Dan Harmon publicly feuded with Chevy Chase, part of the show's ensemble cast. Harmon was fired at the end of the season.

The Broadcast Television Journalists Association is an offshoot of the Broadcast Film Critics Association. The winners will be announced Monday, June 18th, at a gala awards dinner at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Here's the list of nominees:

Best Drama Series

Breaking Bad – AMC

Downton Abbey – PBS

Game of Thrones – HBO

The Good Wife – CBS

Homeland – Showtime

Mad Men – AMC

Best Actor in a Drama Series

Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad – AMC

Kelsey Grammer – Boss – Starz

Jon Hamm – Mad Men - AMC

Charlie Hunnam – Sons of Anarchy – FX

Damian Lewis – Homeland – Showtime

Timothy Olyphant – Justified – FX

Best Actress in a Drama Series

Claire Danes – Homeland – Showtime

Michelle Dockery – Downton Abbey - PBS

Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife – CBS

Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men – AMC

Emmy Rossum – Shameless – Showtime

Katey Sagal – Sons of Anarchy – FX

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones – HBO

Giancarlo Esposito – Breaking Bad – AMC

Neal McDonough – Justified – FX

John Noble – Fringe – FOX

Aaron Paul – Breaking Bad - AMC

John Slattery – Mad Men – AMC

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Christine Baranski – The Good Wife – CBS

Anna Gunn – Breaking Bad - AMC

Christina Hendricks – Mad Men – AMC

Regina King – Southland - TNT

Kelly Macdonald – Boardwalk Empire – HBO

Maggie Siff – Sons of Anarchy – FX

Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series

Dylan Baker – Damages – DirecTV

Jere Burns – Justified – FX

Loretta Devine – Grey’s Anatomy – ABC

Lucy Liu – Southland – TNT

Carrie Preston – The Good Wife – CBS

Chloe Webb – Shameless – Showtime

Best Reality Series

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations – Travel Channel

Hoarders – A&E

Sister Wives – TLC

Kitchen Nightmares – FOX

Pawn Stars – History

Undercover Boss – CBS

Best Reality Series – Competition

The Pitch – AMC

Shark Tank – ABC

So You Think You Can Dance – FOX

The Voice – NBC

Chopped – FOOD

The Amazing Race - CBS

Best Reality Show Host

Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars – ABC

Nick Cannon – America’s Got Talent - NBC

Cat Deeley – So You Think You Can Dance – FOX

Phil Keoghan – The Amazing Race - CBS

RuPaul – RuPaul’s Drag Race - Logo

Best Talk Show

Conan - TBS

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – Comedy Central

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon - NBC

Jimmy Kimmel Live! – ABC

The View - ABC

Best Comedy Series

The Big Bang Theory – CBS

Community – NBC

Girls – HBO

Modern Family – ABC

New Girl – FOX

Parks and Recreation – NBC

Best Actor in a Comedy Series

Don Cheadle – House of Lies – Showtime

Louis C.K. – Louie – FX

Larry David – Curb Your Enthusiasm – HBO

Garret Dillahunt – Raising Hope – FOX

Joel McHale – Community – NBC

Jim Parsons – The Big Bang Theory – CBS

Best Actress in a Comedy Series

Zooey Deschanel – New Girl – FOX

Lena Dunham – Girls – HBO

Julia Louis Dreyfus – Veep - HBO

Martha Plimpton – Raising Hope – FOX

Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Ashley Rickards – Awkward – MTV

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Ty Burrell – Modern Family – ABC

Max Greenfield – New Girl – FOX

Nick Offerman – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Danny Pudi – Community – NBC

Jim Rash – Community – NBC

Damon Wayans Jr. – Happy Endings – ABC

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy

Julie Bowen – Modern Family – ABC

Alison Brie – Community – NBC

Cheryl Hines – Suburgatory – ABC

Gillian Jacobs – Community – NBC

Eden Sher – The Middle – ABC

Casey Wilson – Happy Endings – ABC

Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series

Becky Ann Baker – Girls – HBO

Bobby Cannavale – Modern Family – ABC

Kathryn Hahn – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Justin Long – New Girl – FOX

Paul Rudd – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Peter Scolari – Girls – HBO

Best Animated Series

Archer – FX

Adventure Time – Cartoon Network

Bob’s Burgers – FOX

Family Guy – FOX

Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Cartoon Network

Best Movie/Miniseries

American Horror Story – FX

Luther – BBC America

Sherlock – PBS

Page Eight – PBS

The Hour – BBC America

Game Change – HBO

Best Actor in a Movie/Miniseries

Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock – PBS

Bill Nighy – Page Eight – PBS

Woody Harrelson – Game Change – HBO

Idris Elba – Luther – BBC America

Dominic West – The Hour – BBC America

Kevin Costner – Hatfields & McCoys – History

Best Actress in a Movie/Miniseries

Jessica Lange – American Horror Story – FX

Gillian Anderson - Great Expectations – PBS

Julianne Moore – Game Change – HBO

Patricia Clarkson – Five – Lifetime

Lara Pulver – Sherlock – PBS

Emily Watson – Appropriate Adult – Sundance

Submissions are still being accepted for The Most Exciting New Series category.

Alesha Dixon has hinted that her Britain's Got Talent return is not a certainty.

The singer joined the judging panel for the ITV1 talent show earlier this year, with Simon Cowell publicly asking her, David Walliams and Amanda Holden back for next year.

However, Dixon explained that a return has yet to be finalised.

"They have said they'd like me back but until I sign on that dotted line you just don't know," she is quoted as saying in The Sun.

Dixon also said that she is not expecting to be asked to guest judge The X Factor UK, saying: "They have not asked me. I am not waiting for that phone call."

She added that she does not regret leaving BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing in favour of Britain's Got Talent, explaining: "I make decisions based on my gut instinct and it felt right. I have not got a bad word to say about Strictly, I loved everything about it during my time there.

"I embrace change though. I like to do new things and I think it is about evolving as a person."

Dixon has previously said that she is hoping to return to Britain's Got Talent, declaring that she had the "time of [her] life".

NBC's revamped "America's Got Talent" was Monday's top-rated show, but Fox won the night overall with the season premieres of the Gordon Ramsay offerings "Hell's Kitchen" and "MasterChef," according to preliminary numbers.

Fox took first place in the advertiser-sought 18-49 demographic with a 2.3 rating/7 share and fourth in total viewers with 5.3 million. The "Hell's Kitchen" premiere at 8 was down slightly from last summer's premiere, posting a 2.4/7, and drew 5.4 million total viewers. The "MasterChef" premiere the following hour improved over last summer's premiere, climbing 28 percent in the demo for a 2.3/6 and pulling in 5.2 million total viewers.

NBC came in second in ratings and first in total viewers with an average 2.1/6 and 7.3 million. "America's Got Talent" at 8 climbed 14 percent in the demo to become the night's top-rated program with a 3.2/10, and was also the night's most-watched show with 12 million total viewers. "American Ninja Warrior" the following hour inched up in the demo to take a 2.2/6 and attracted 6.7 million total viewers. A "Grimm" repeat followed.

ABC drew third place in ratings and second in total viewers with an average 1.7/5 and 6.2 million. "The Bachelorette" at 8 grew 11 percent in the demo for a 2.1/6, and had the second-highest total viewership of the night with 6.7 million. A "Castle" repeat aired at 10.

CBS, which ran repeats throughout the night, came in fourth in ratings and third in total viewers with an average 1.3/4 and 5.4 million.

Want to own the Iron Throne from "Game of Thrones"? You can travel to the fictional land of Westeros, sack Kings Landing, and kill its current occupant, Joffrey Baratheon. Or you can click over to the HBO store and pay $30,000 for a very nice replica.

The latter way is probably easier, if a little less brave. Also: Winning the throne in battle will make you the envy of all your friends, and putting it on your AmEx will make you look like a dork with rich parents. Kind of like Joffrey.

HBO says no one has stepped up to claim a throne yet, but the replicas just went on sale Tuesday. And, yes, the network says this is real. (We just clicked through to see if we could buy one, and it seemed like we could have. But we didn't.)

Each throne is made to order, but does not include a cushion. So what does $30,000 get you, exactly? Here are some specs:

Granted, that's not as impressive as the original throne, which, according to legend, is made of a thousand swords that were hammered into a chair over 59 days.

But the fire-proof resin will be helpful if anyone from Winterfell tries to burn down your apartment complex to seize your awesome new seat. You might also want to pay off some sadistic guards to protect your investment, and help you get it into the U-Haul next time you move.

Finally, if you're seriously considering this, shipping and handling is $1,800. As if that would stop you at this point.